The Agricultural Revolution
The Neolithic Revolution was the shift from hunting and gathering to farming, which allowed permanent settlements to grow.
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The Neolithic Revolution was the shift from hunting and gathering to farming, which allowed permanent settlements to grow.
- Crops and animals were domesticated
- Surplus food supported specialists
- Villages became towns
🧠 Quick quiz
Three questions. Score 2 or more to complete the topic.
What is The Agricultural Revolution?
Within History, which covers ancient civilisations, empires, revolutions, world wars and the making of the modern world, this topic explains The Agricultural Revolution. History topics connect events, people and ideas across time, so each one here gives a clear summary and a way to test your understanding.
Check that you can explain The Agricultural Revolution in your own words and give one example from everyday life. If you can do that, you have understood the core idea.
Understanding The Agricultural Revolution helps you explain change over time and judge why events happened, which is the core skill in history essays.
The Agricultural Revolution in detail
The Neolithic or Agricultural Revolution, beginning around 10,000 BC in the Fertile Crescent, was the change from hunting and gathering to farming. People domesticated plants such as wheat and barley, and animals such as sheep, goats and cattle.
Farming produced surplus food, allowing permanent settlements, population growth, specialised jobs, trade and eventually towns and states. It also brought new problems, including disease, inequality and dependence on harvests. It developed independently in several places, including China, the Americas and the Middle East. It is regarded as one of the most important turning points in human history.
How the interactive helps you understand The Agricultural Revolution
Watch the cycle in the interactive. Use any sliders or buttons it offers to change the values and see how the cycle responds.
Before you change anything, predict the result. Then change one value at a time and check whether your prediction was right. This is a quick way to build a correct mental model of The Agricultural Revolution.
Real-life uses and examples
- Compare The Agricultural Revolution with another event to spot patterns of change and continuity.
- Build a timeline that shows when The Agricultural Revolution happened and what came before and after.
- Judge how important The Agricultural Revolution was by weighing evidence from more than one source.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Treating one source as the whole story when you study The Agricultural Revolution.
- Describing events without explaining why they happened.
- Learning the definition without testing it. Use the quiz and the interactive to check that you can apply the idea.
Frequently asked questions about The Agricultural Revolution
What is The Agricultural Revolution?
The Neolithic Revolution was the shift from hunting and gathering to farming, which allowed permanent settlements to grow.
What are the most important points about The Agricultural Revolution?
The main points are: Crops and animals were domesticated; Surplus food supported specialists; Villages became towns.
Why is The Agricultural Revolution useful?
Understanding The Agricultural Revolution helps you explain change over time and judge why events happened, which is the core skill in history essays.
How can I practise The Agricultural Revolution?
Open the interactive at the top of this page and change the controls one at a time. Predict the result before each change, then take the three-question quiz. A score of two or more marks the topic as complete on this device.
Which topics are related to The Agricultural Revolution?
Related topics in History include Ancient Egypt, Ancient China, The Persian Wars.